U.S. Navy awarded $19.2 million contract to Boeing to design and build the High Altitude Anti-Submarine Warfare Weapon Capability (HAAWC)...
The system will leverage combat-proven technologies from Boeing’s Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) so it can be launched from high altitudes and far from targets.
HAAWC would be launched from the P-8A Multi mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA) at an altitude of 30,000 feet and glide seven to 10 minutes to the water entry point, where it would shed its wings and activate a parachute to lower the torpedo into the water to begin its run towards the target.
Currently, ASW aircraft such as the P-3 Orion have to make a time-consuming descent from their surveillance altitudes of 30,000 feet to a release altitude of 300-1,000 feet to release a torpedo.
This descent down to the release point and then the climb back up to surveillance altitude uses a lot of fuel, reducing orbit and surveillance time.
The HAAWC would enable the P-8A to launch the weapon from a high altitude based on targeting information generated by its own sensors or the sensors of other platforms. This would save time in deploying a weapon, and obviate the need for the aircraft or other ASW platforms to enter threat zones.
Adapting current JDAM and SDB technologies will also reduce development risk and cost for the Navy.
The HAAWC is a derivative of the new Mk 54 anti submarine torpedo that entered service in 2004.
The Mk54 is an all-digital lightweight torpedo that marries technology from the older Mk 46 and Mk 50 air- and surface-launched torpedoes with advanced software algorithms from the large submarine-launched Mk 48 torpedo.
An Mk 54 would be fitted with the wings designed for a Standoff Land-Attack Missile-Expanded Response cruise missile to enable it to glide to the target area. The tail assembly would include the guidance kit designed for the Joint Direct-Attack Munition, which contains a Global Positioning System receiver for precision guidance.
The HAAWC also could be equipped with a data link to transmit target position updates while the weapon is in flight, further improving the weapon’s accuracy.
